Every now and then, the internet reminds us that humanity is an endlessly fascinating species. Like the YouTube video showcasing the real wonderfully unconventional ways people tackle everyday hygiene and activities of daily living. Apparently, not everyone uses the bathroom, brushes their teeth, or washes up quite the way the rest of us imagine. Some folks face the toilet tank like they’re saddling up for a rodeo. Others transform the shower into a full-service dental office. And that’s just the opening act.
As it turns out, these aren’t isolated oddballs inventing new Olympic events in the privacy of their bathrooms. Many of these have cultural roots from across much of East Asia and parts of Northern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. Others have become popular largely through social media, health trends, or germ-conscious habits. Some have been covered in newspapers, magazines, television programs, surveys, and even medical literature because they’re surprisingly common, unexpectedly practical, and guaranteed to spark a spirited debate. Mention using your feet to flush a public toilet, and you’ll discover that everyone has an opinion… usually a bold one.
So, prepare yourself for a tour through some of the most unusual, amusing, and surprisingly widespread hygiene habits people swear by. You may laugh, shake your head in disbelief, or suddenly realize you’ve been committing one of these “crimes against normalcy” all along.
Sitting in Reverse While Using the Toilet
Why merely use a toilet when you can ride it like you’re piloting a porcelain motorcycle? Reverse sitters swear the tank doubles as a deluxe reading desk, snack shelf, or command center for solving the world’s problems one flush at a time.
Brushing Your Teeth in the Shower
Why waste perfectly good shower time? These efficiency experts emerge squeaky clean with sparkling teeth, shampoo in their hair, and toothpaste foam somehow still clinging to one ear.
Using a Bidet Instead of Toilet Paper
Bidet devotees have no interest in discussing the weather. They’d much rather explain why a refreshing splash of water has elevated their bathroom experience to what they consider luxury spa status.
Using Squeeze Bottles Instead of Toilet Paper
Unable to justify installing a bidet? No problem. Simply arm yourself with a squeeze bottle and transform every bathroom visit into an Olympic precision watering event.
Using Your Hands Instead of Washcloths and Loofahs
Why trust a loofah that’s been hanging around the shower for six months? Hand washers proudly insist their built-in equipment has worked just fine since birth.
Blowing Your Nose in the Shower
The hot steam loosens everything up, the water washes away the evidence, and nobody has to witness the impressive launch. It’s nature’s most discreet clean-up crew.
Using Your Feet to Flush Public Toilets
Touch the handle with your hand? Absolutely not. One graceful karate kick later, you’ve successfully flushed the toilet while looking like you’re auditioning for an action movie.
Opening Restroom Doors Using Paper Towels
After meticulously washing your hands for two minutes, you’re certainly not about to ruin the achievement by touching the same door handle everyone else grabbed on the way out.
Using Your Elbows to Turn Off Faucets
Mastering this move requires the coordination of a gymnast and the flexibility of a yoga instructor, all to avoid shaking hands with a faucet.
Sleeping in the Clothes You Wore All Day
Why change into pajamas when today’s outfit already knows you so well? Besides, when you wake up tomorrow morning you’ll already be dressed and ready for work before your alarm finishes ringing.
Using Your Sleeve to Press Public Elevator Buttons
Fingerprints are for amateurs. Sleeve pressers confidently jab elevator buttons with enough fabric to upholster a recliner, leaving their hands gloriously uninvolved.
Drinking Directly from Faucets
Forget glasses. True connoisseurs know water tastes at least 12% better when consumed directly from the tap while trying not to bang their forehead on the sink.
Using Your Smartphone While Sitting on the Toilet
What began as a quick bathroom break somehow turns into two hours of answering emails, reading the news, watching three videos, and wondering why your legs have fallen asleep.
Standing On Top of Toilet Seats When Urinating
It’s equal parts balance beam routine and survival challenge. The crowd awards bonus points for not slipping while relieving yourself and sitting down on questionable toilet seats.
Covering Public Toilet Seats with Layers of Toilet Paper
One layer is sensible. Twenty-seven layers create what can only be described as a handcrafted quilt worthy of being entered into the county fair.
Using Miswak Chewing Sticks Instead of Toothbrushes
While everyone else shops for electric toothbrushes with Bluetooth, Miswak users quietly smile and clean their teeth with a stick that’s been getting the job done for centuries.
Cleaning Your Ears with WaterPiks Instead of Q-tips
Some people see a WaterPik and think, “Surely this belongs nowhere near my ears.” Others immediately begin engineering projects that would make their audiologist faint.
Sterilizing Your Hands After Shaking Hands
The handshake ends. One second later, the sanitizer appears as if summoned by magic. The other person is left wondering whether they just met a germ expert or received a terrible review.
Disinfecting Restaurant Utensils Before Eating
Before the appetizer arrives, every knife, fork, and spoon receives a level of sanitation normally reserved for operating rooms.
Opening Public Doors with Your Feet
If there’s a door within kicking distance, these people are convinced it was specifically designed to be opened by footwear rather than fingers.
Pressing Crosswalk Buttons with Your Knuckles
Only amateurs use their fingertips. Professionals proudly extend a single knuckle with the precision of a jewel thief cracking an elaborate safe.
Using Hand Sanitizer Kept on a Keychain
Their keychain jingles with sanitizer, and every touched surface triggers another celebratory squeeze. By sunset, their hands are cleaner than a surgical theater.
Wearing Disposable Gloves While Grocery Shopping
Every apple is inspected like radioactive evidence while oversized disposable gloves crinkle dramatically through the produce aisle, attracting curious glances from everyone nearby.
Sleeping with Your Socks On
Your feet never actually touch the sheets. Somewhere beneath the blankets those loyal socks are keeping bed linens clean, standing guard like tiny textile security officers.
Gargling After Visiting Public Places
The moment they return home, the performance begins. Shoes off. Keys down. Gargling dramatically enough for the neighbors to assume someone is rehearsing for an opera.
Drying Your Hands by Shaking Them
Why use towels when you can perform an enthusiastic interpretive dance with your fingers? Everyone within six feet receives a complimentary misting.
Using the Forbidden Guest Soap
Every home has that pristine decorative soap that’s apparently destined to remain untouched until the end of time. Then, one brave rebel actually washes with it, triggering household outrage worthy of an international incident.
